(Downtown Hotels 11 - 20)
11. Embassy Suites San Diego Bay (0.44 mi/0.71 km) ***.5 3D UNAVAILABLE on Expedia or AAA, $220 through Comic Con last year (had a shuttle to the Con). The front door of each spacious, contemporary suite opens out onto a 12-story atrium, and rooms facing the harbor have spectacular views. A cooked-to-order breakfast and afternoon cocktails are complementary, as are airport transfers and a daily newspaper. Room rates vary greatly depending upon occupancy. The convention center, the Embarcadero,
Seaport Village, and a trolley station are nearby. 601 Pacific Hwy., Embarcadero, San Diego 92101. Phone 619/239-2400 or 800/362-2779, fax 619/239-1520, web
www.embassy-suites.com. 337 suites. Restaurant, room service, in-room refrigerator and microwave in kitchenette, cable TV with movies and video games, cribs available, wireless internet, sofa bed, free full breakfast and late-night snacks, pool table, tennis court, spa, sauna, pool, gym, hair salon, dry cleaning, laundry service, bicycle rental, babysitting, free airport shuttle, parking ($28 a night valet parking); no smoking. Accepts AE, D, DC, MC, V.
12. The Sofia Hotel (0.47 mi/0.76 km) ***.5 3D UNAVAILABLE on Expedia or AAA, $265 through Comic Con last year (had a shuttle to the Con). No Fodor's review. 150 W. Broadway, Gaslamp Quarter, San Diego 92101. Phone 619/234-0009 or 800/826-0009, fax 619/544-9879, web
www.thesofiahotel.com/. 212 rooms. Restaurant, cable TV with movies, in-room refrigerator and microwave, wired internet, free bottled water, gym, masseuse, business services, dry cleaning and laundry, parking ($28 per night valet), pets ($50 per stay); no smoking. Accepts AE, D, MC, V.
12 (again). Westin San Diego (was the Wyndham San Diego at Emerald Plaza, which Fodor's insists on calling it) (0.49 mi/0.79 km) **** 4D UNAVAILABLE on Expedia, $449 through AAA (1 bed), $179 through the Comic Con last year (had a shuttle to the Con). This property's office and conference facilities draw many business travelers. Still, the Wyndham is also fine for vacationers who want to be near downtown shopping and restaurants. The beige-dominated standard rooms are rather bland and not large, but many of the upper-floor rooms have panoramic views. The health club is fully equipped and rarely crowded. 400 W. Broadway, Gaslamp Quarter, San Diego 92101. Phone 619/239-4500 or 800/996-3426, fax 619/239-4527, web
www.westin.com/SanDiegoHotels. 416 rooms, 20 suites. Restaurant, café, room service (limited hours), minibars, refrigerator on request, cable TV with movies and video games, wired internet, bar, spa, pool, gym, business center, computer/cell phone rental, sauna, steam room, laundry service, babysitting, parking ($25 a night valet); no smoking. Accepts AE, D, DC, MC, V.
No #'s 13 or 14.
15. The U. S Grant (0.49 mi/0.79 km)
***** 4D $694 (!!!), $549 through AAA, $299 through Comic Con last year (had a shuttle to the Con). Fodor's Choice hotel. Stepping into the regal U.S. Grant not only puts you in the lap of luxury, but also back in San Diego history; the 98-year-old building is on the National Register of Historic Sites. A 2006 remodel reintroduced the hotel's original grandeur and opulence. The lobby is a confection of luxurious French fabrics, crystal chandeliers, and Italian Carrera-marble floors. Guests sip tea and martinis here Thursday through Sunday afternoons. The rooms feature custom Italian linens, opera lighting, and original French and Native American artwork, and the sunny baths are elegantly designed with marble tile shower enclosures and stone sinks. The Grant Grill restaurant reopened in January 2007, boasting a fusion of grilled specialties and fresh regional cuisine. The venue's 1940s-style New York decor has a glamorous appeal with African mahogany walls and plush seating. 326 Broadway, Downtown, San Diego 92101. Phone 866/837-4270 or 800/237-5029, fax 619/239-9517, web
www.usgrant.net. 270 rooms, 47 suites. Restaurant, room service, cable TV with movies, minibar, wireless internet, bar, gym, dry cleaning/laundry service, limo service, parking ($30 per night valet), allows pets under 30 pounds ($150 per stay); smoking and non-smoking rooms. Accepts AE, D, DC, MC, V.
16. 500 West Hotel (0.51 mi/0.82 km) *.5 $119. An $8 million renovation in 2004 transformed San Diego's historic 1924 Armed Services YMCA Building into this hip, urban boutique hotel. Catering to the style-conscious, the hotel has small rooms big on quality, with flat-screen TVs, platform beds, Michael Graves-designed lighting, and a postmodern decor. It has single rooms as well as doubles, and all rooms share bathrooms. The Grand Central Café serves breakfast and lunch daily, and the hotel lobby has wireless Internet. Weekly tenants can use a gourmet kitchen equipped with a Viking range and Sub-Zero fridge; there's also a common area with tables and vending machines. The YMCA is still downstairs and guests can use it for $5 a day or $15 a week. 500 W. Broadway, Downtown, San Diego 92101. Phone 619/234-5252 or 866/500-7533, fax: 619/234-5272, web
www.500westhotel.com/. 260 rooms. Restaurant, cable TV, free wireless internet, refrigerator on request, one bathroom per three rooms, microwave in lobby, bar, gym, dry cleaning, laundry room, parking ($5 to $15 per night self); no smoking. Accepts MC and V only.
17. Courtyard by Marriott San Diego Downtown-Gaslamp (0.54 mi/0.87 km) *** UNAVAILABLE on Expedia, not listed in AAA, $$-$$$, $189 through the Comic Con last year (had a shuttle to the Con). Marriott took a venerable 1928 bank building and transformed it. Under a Spanish-style two-story painted ceiling, the marble lobby is a breathtaking architectural space where ornate, numbered teller cages still stand at check-in, separating the lobby from the Lincoln Bar. Since this hotel caters to business travelers, rooms are simply furnished and serviceable. There are some Jacuzzi rooms, and the Presidential Suite has a balcony overlooking the bay. 530 Broadway, Gaslamp Quarter, San Diego 92101. Phone 619/446-3000 or 800/321-2211, fax: 619/446-3010, web
www.marriott.com/sancd. 230 rooms, 15 suites. Restaurant, room service, refrigerator on request, cable TV with movies and video games, free wired internet, bar, gym, business services, dry cleaning/laundry room, limo service, parking ($24 per night valet); no smoking. Accepts AE, D, DC, MC, V.
18. Bristol Hotel (0.51 mi/0.82 km) ***.5 3D UNAVAILABLE on Expedia and AAA, $-$$, $157 through Comic Con last year (had a shuttle to the Con). Pop Art by Peter Max and Andy Warhol on the walls marks the style of this splashy boutique hotel. Rooms are decorated in fearless red, yellow, orange, and bright blue and come with bathrobes and CD players. The San Diego Trolley stops right outside at First and Broadway, but beware, the Greyhound bus depot across the street is noisy. 1055 1st Avenue, Downtown, San Diego 92101. Phone 619/232-6141 or 888/745-4393, fax: 619/232-0118, web
www.thebristolsandiego.com/. 102 rooms. Restaurant, room service (limited hours), minibar, cable TV with movies, free wireless internet, bar, pool table, gym, business & secretarial services, dry cleaning, picnic area, parking ($22 per night valet); no smoking. Accepts AE, D, DC, MC, V.
18 (again). Westgate Hotel (0.52 mi/0.84 km) ***.5 4D UNAVAILABLE on Expedia and AAA, $184 through the Comic Con last year (had a shuttle to the Con). Fodor's Choice hotel. A nondescript, modern high-rise near Horton Plaza hides what must be the most opulent hotel in San Diego. The lobby, modeled after the anteroom at Versailles, has hand-cut Baccarat chandeliers. Rooms are individually furnished with antiques, Italian marble counters, and bath fixtures with 24-karat overlays. From the ninth floor up the views of the harbor and city are breathtaking. Afternoon tea is served in the lobby to the accompaniment of piano and harp music. The San Diego Trolley stops right outside the door. 1055 2nd Ave., Gaslamp Quarter, San Diego 92101. Phone 619/238-1818 or 800/221-3802, 800/522-1564 in CA, fax 619/557-3737, web
www.westgatehotel.com. 223 rooms. Two restaurants, room service, minibar, DVD player, cable TV with movies, video games and internet, wired internet, bar, masseuse, gym, spa, bicycles for rent, business services, dry cleaning, free airport shuttle, parking ($27 a night valet parking); no smoking. Accepts AE, D, DC, MC, V.
18 (yet again). Setai San Diego (0.56 mi/0.90 km) no rating $500 (one room). Opening Fall 2008. 240 Broadway, Downtown, San Diego 92101. Phone 619/515-3000, web
www.setaisandiego.com/. 161 rooms. Restaurant, European breakfast, room service, plasma cable TV, DVD player, sound system with iPod plug-in, wireless internet, bar, gym, pool, spa, SUV rentals, business services, laptop rental, valet parking probable, pets allowed; no smoking.
19. W San Diego (0.63 mi/1.01 km) **** $402, $295 through the Comic Con last year (had a shuttle to the Con). Come here for the trendy decor and neon drinks, not the service. The W chain's urban finesse adapts to San Diego with nautical blue-and-white rooms with beach-ball pillows and goose-down comforters atop the beds. The Beach bar has a heated sand floor and fire pit, but the pool is tiny by San Diego standards. The lobby doubles as the futuristic Living Room lounge, a local hipster nightspot where nonhotel guests have to wait behind a velvet rope. Be sure to get a room on an upper floor -- the leather-and black-clad crowd parties into the night. The hotel restaurant, Rice, serves stylish Asian and Latin cuisine, and the Away Spa caters to both body and spirit. 421 West B St., Downtown, San Diego 92101. Phone 619/398-3100 or 877/822-0000, fax 619/231-5779, web
www.whotels.com/sandiego. 258 rooms, 16 suites. Restaurant, room service, minibar, cable TV with video games, in-room massage, wired internet, bars, gym, spa, dry cleaning, business services, computer rental, limo service, parking ($26 a night valet parking), pets under 40 pounds allowed ($100 per stay plus $25 per night); smoking and non-smoking rooms. Accepts AE, D, MC, V (but not DC!).
20. Sheraton Suites San Diego at Symphony Hall (0.78 mi/1.26 km) **** 3D UNAVAILABLE on Expedia and AAA, $169 through the Comic Con last year (had a shuttle to the Con). 701 A St, Downtown, San Diego 92101. Phone 619/696-9800 or 866/716-8130, fax 619/696-1555, web
www.sheraton.com/SuitesSanDiego/. 264 suites. Restaurant, minibar, in-room refrigerator, cable TV with movies, wired internet, sofa bed, bar, pool table, masseuse, spa, gym, pool, business services, dry cleaning, parking ($22 a night self, $28 a night valet), pets accepted; no smoking. Accepts AE, D, MC, V.